Dear John,
Thank you for the detailed info. After reading a bunch of threads over at RC Groups, I realized just how much I still must learn before even *thinking* about messing around with PPZ.
I've located an RC shop close to my house where hopefully I can meet up with some other like-minded folks. It seems that having someone show you the ropes is a good way...and maybe make some new friends as well.
I've been considering the Slow Stick, Mini Mag, and Easy Star. It sounds like Multiplex does a good job with that ELAPOR foam which is considering all the crashes I will make. Just hoping the Mini Mag isn't too difficult for a total newbie. Will indeed check out the simulators as well.
So thanks again to everyone for the kind support. I'll direct any more airplane-specific queries to the people over at RC Groups and hopefully one day I'll be able to step it up and delve into the Paparazzi UAV system. :)
Best regards,
Spencer
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Message: 1
Date: Sat, 28 Feb 2009 10:17:02 -0800
From: John Burt <address@hidden>
Subject: Re: [Paparazzi-devel] Can you suggest a suitable UAV for
Taipei?
To: address@hidden
Message-ID: <address@hidden>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8; format=flowed
I'm a Paparazzi newbie too, but have been flying RC for many years. It
seems to me that there are at least two issues that may be most
important for determining the airframe you use.
First, before you touch an autopilot, you need to learn how to fly a
model aircraft. I don't think you can configure, test, and operate any
UAV without at least basic flight proficiency. If there is nobody there
who can help you learn, then I suggest you invest in a flight simulator
first and put some hours in. Assuming you stay with fixed wing aircraft,
when you are ready to start flying, you will want to select an aircraft
that is slow and stable, and cheap (you will crash a lot, so don't waste
your money). Second, as you noted, your intended flying environment
(Taipei) suggests you get an aircraft that can be flown from a small
park. That's what the RTF Park Flyer genre was made for.
Assuming that you don't fly on very windy days, you might consider a GWS
Slow Stick. I know several people who have learned to fly with this
model, and I once met a fellow who used one for urban aerial photography
(he actually made a little money taking real-estate photos). First, you
can learn to fly with it. Then when you're ready to play with UAVs, you
can hack it (or it's replacement if you trashed the first one) for use
with Paprazzi (brushless motor, ailerons, etc).
Cheers,
John
Spencer Pangborn wrote:
> Thank you to those that helped with my netbook question. I can rest
> easy knowing the my upcoming netbook purchase will run Paparazzi, no
> problem. :)
>
> So today's concern is about which type of aircraft to use. I admit
> that I don't have an R/C vehicle experience; but it has been the
> Paparazzi project that has prompted me to dive in. The main catalyst
> is to be able to take aerial photos of the streets here in Taipei, as
> well as learn more about customizing hardware components.
>
> If any of you have visited Taiwan before you know that the population
> density is incredibly high. Therefore I would like to know if any of
> you can recommend an aircraft that is easy to control (perhaps even
> hover), can support a large enough payload for simple photo and video,
> and allows easy implementation of Paparazzi.
>
> I searched the Wiki for "helicopters", but didn't see too much info.
> A Google search for "paparazzi + helicopter + uav" gave me this thread
> of a newb looking to do a similar thing
> <http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=813088>.
>
> However, if a heli is too technical for a new user like me to
> implement Paparazzi, any suitable beginner plane might do the trick.
>
> Best regards,
>
> Spencer
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
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> Paparazzi-devel mailing list
> address@hidden
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>
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